Saturday, September 19, 2009

carter's new Profile (not shop statement)

Gabe and Sarah have cautioned me to be pithy and succinct which is super important for the statement that people see when entering my shop, but I feel that if someone wants to read my profile they are only clicking on the link because they care what I have to say. So I think I can afford to be a little more detailed and philosophical (If I am wrong please tell me!). OK, so here goes:

"I believe that the world is filled with magical and splendorous beauty. This is especially true of the natural world. Handmade crafts and food, the visual and performing arts, and love and human kindness are some of the things that humans do which tap into this transcendent quality. I make pots in an attempt to explore this. But beauty is not something that can always be approached from head on. My experience with clay has led me to pursue it only indirectly; never staring too hard, as it were, but keeping it in the corner of my eye. It is almost as if you need to move sideways lest you scare these elusive qualities from your work. So, I try not to be too specific with my designs. Each pot is a fresh attempt at bringing new magic into the world, and my choice of glazes (and especially the wood kiln) only adds to the serendipity. This way the collaboration of my hands and the clay will always lead to new expressions and the surprise of quiet beauty never becomes trite or common."